During McHenry County College’s winter commencement ceremony earlier this month, one of the 528 graduates was a 16-year-old student from Cary who received his associate degree – before even graduating from high school.

Lucas Hernacki, who graduated with honors from MCC and earned an associate degree in arts, always knew he wanted to graduate early from high school. He found the opportunity to get dual credits through the community college’s Running Start program. He will graduate high school as a junior at the age of 17 in the spring.

“I was thinking to myself, ‘Well, why not?’” he said.

His father, Matt Hernacki, said Lucas’ accelerated educational journey started as early as preschool, when teachers at a Montessori school in Crystal Lake noticed that he was advanced. Through other parents, Hernacki discovered Davidson Academy Online, a virtual school that caters to “profoundly gifted students,” according to its website.

“Instead of being in the regular grade level, they meet the students” at their level, Matt Hernacki said. “Most of the kids are taking college-level course work right away in middle school.”

Lucas started looking into enrolling in a Spanish class at MCC when he was about 12, but he ended up not registering.

Once he turned 15, Lucas started taking dual-credit classes and became more serious last year about obtaining an associate degree. Along with earning credits through Advanced Placement classes, he also took a wide range of classes at the community college such as economics, speech, geology, construction, horticulture and film.

Juggling heavy homework loads from high school, MCC courses online and in person, as well as his part-time job at a restaurant in Palatine, Lucas learned how to master time management at a young age. His father said the most difficult challenge was to know how hard to push him versus allowing him to be a kid.

“It definitely was difficult sometimes to have everything going on at once, but I try to pace myself,” Lucas said.

When Lucas got his diploma during the commencement ceremony Dec. 13, his speech teacher asked, “Are you even 18 yet?”

MCC Chief Advancement and Marketing Officer Christina Haggerty said “everyone at MCC is extremely proud of him and his efforts, as this is truly an outstanding achievement.”

The educational advancements don’t stop with Lucas. His younger sibling, Adam, is one grade ahead and is a “very accomplished guitarist,” their father said.

“Luke is the first one with a college degree in our immediate family,” Hernacki said.

Now with an associate degree, Lucas said he feels relieved to have accomplished the feat after months of hard work. His major motivator was working toward his goal of going on a months-long hiking trip along the Appalachian Trail.

Hiking, backpacking and camping are hobbies Lucas has been able to experience with his family on trips through New Hampshire, Alaska, Canada and Michigan. Lucas plans to take the Appalachian Trail trip, which is more than 2,000 miles from Georgia to Maine, in 2027 and expects for it to take about six months.

“Everybody tells me I’m crazy, but I know he’s more than prepared,” Matt Hernacki said of his son. “He’s as ready, I guess, as he could probably be to do something like that.”

After the trip, Lucas doesn’t have any set plans yet, but knows he wants to get a bachelor’s degree. His favorite subject is learning languages. So far, Lucas is fluent in Spanish, is learning Italian and wants to learn Polish.

Despite the hard work and pressure, Lucas recommended that anyone with an interest should try out dual credits. It’s important to think creatively and have options that aren’t always on the traditional pathway, he said.

“All you have to do is start with one class, and if it goes horribly, then it goes horribly,” he said. “But if it doesn’t, then it can be a whole new opportunity.”